NEW YORK, N.Y.,- On Friday, a public-private partnership with General Mills, a leading U.S. food company, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) was announced at the closing of the Fifth Annual Meeting of the Clinton Global Health Initiative. This partnership will improve the capacity of small and medium-sized food businesses across sub-Saharan Africa to produce healthy, fortified food products.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - This week (Sept. 21), the U.S. Agency for International Development contributed $6 million to the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) trust fund facility, administered by the World Bank. The U.S. Government is now the second largest donor to the trust fund, behind the United Kingdom. Other major donors include Spain, Netherlands, Switzerland, Germany, France and Norway.

WASHINGTON, DC - Amy Meyer, director of the Office of Economic Growth at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) field mission in Pakistan, was awarded the National Security and International Affairs Medal at the Partnership for Public Service annual gala event September 23. This award recognizes a federal employee for a significant contribution to the nation in activities related to national security and international affairs (including defense, military affairs, diplomacy, foreign assistance and trade).

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) hosted Dr. Beth Noveck as a part of the Administrator's Forum. As the United States deputy chief technology officer for open government, Dr. Noveck leads the President's Open Government Initiative and she challenged the Agency to use technology to improve development.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - On September 8th, 2009 the World Bank Group released Doing Business 2010: Reforming through Difficult Times. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is honored to have partnered with eight of the top-ten countries highlighted for reforms to make it easier for entrepreneurs to start and expand their businesses. USAID programs provided technical support to Rwanda, Kyrgyz Republic, Macedonia, Moldova, Colombia, Tajikistan, Egypt, and Liberia.

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) congratulates its partner, the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) for its recent findings that may bring the scientific community a bit closer to an HIV vaccine. The results allow scientists to understand the dynamics of naturally occurring protective mechanisms that some people have against HIV.

Throughout the course of the study entitled, "Protocol G: A Cross Sectional Study to Screen For and Generate Broadly Neutralizing Monoclonal Antibodies from HIV Infected Individuals," scientists discovered that some people who are exposed to HIV have created antibodies that effectively block or neutralize the virus. These promising findings point to important clues that will inform on-going work to design a vaccine against HIV.

WASHINGTON, DC - Early Tuesday morning a structural weakness was discovered in the roof of the building serving as the primary office facility for the U.S. Agency for International Development in Baghdad, Iraq.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Acting Assistant Administrator for Africa, Earl Gast presided over the ceremony where Cheryl L. Anderson was sworn-in on August 6, 2009 as the new mission director for Ghana.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) held an Iftar dinner in recognition of the holy month of Ramadan. USAID Acting Administrator Alonzo Fulgham was the host of the event which was well attended by a representative cross section of the Washington diplomatic and development community. On hand were USAID employees, private citizens, students, professors, development professionals, as were people of many faiths gathered together in recognition of this holy time.

WASHINGTON D.C. - The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) today released the 12th edition of the NGO Sustainability Index, a key analytical tool that measures the progress of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in the Europe and Eurasia region.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The United Nations has designated August 19, 2009, as the first annual World Humanitarian Day in honor of those who devote their lives to helping others and in remembrance of those who have lost their lives while doing so. Around the world, humanitarian workers, including thousands of U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) staff, work in dangerous, challenging places to bring a better life to millions, even as their efforts continue to be limited by increasingly frequent and targeted attacks on humanitarian staff.

Stockholm, Sweden-The head of USAID's credit guarantee program will launch a new online resource to help development practitioners improve financing for water and sanitation programs. This on-the-record, on-camera event will be held on August 19, from 16:00-16:30 in the Press Center and will include Q&A.

WASHINGTON, D.C. and DENVER - August 13, 2009 - The inaugural African Diaspora Marketplace (ADM) closed its call for proposals and has exceeded expectations by collecting 733 business proposals. The ADM is a business entrepreneurship program fostering economic development ideas from U.S.-based African diaspora to create plans for sustainable start-up and established businesses in 19 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.

WASHINGTON, DC. - The U.S. Agency for International Development's (USAID) Acting Administrator, Alonzo Fulgham, addressed attendees of the Haitian Diaspora Unity Congress Sunday in Miami Beach, Fla. Fulgham's remarks before the members of the International Congress of the Haitian Diaspora focused on USAID's initiatives to assist Haiti in partnership with members of the Diaspora. Other VIPs who addressed the Congress were Haiti's Prime Minister Michelle Pierre-Louis and former President Bill Clinton.

WASHINGTON D.C. - The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) co-sponsored "Open Development Camp: Data and Collaboration," an event focused on emerging opportunities to share international development data and on ways to collaborate more constructively. The "open development" approach enables more problem-solvers to address development challenges in a participatory, collaborative and transparent way.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) announced today the swearing in of John Groarke as the Agency's new mission director for Morocco. Counselor to the Agency Lisa Chiles presided over the ceremony and administered the oath of office to Groarke.

"His demonstrated leadership abilities, professional integrity, and analytical skills will be invaluable to him as he leads the Morocco program. I am confident that John will be highly successful as USAID mission director in his new assignment," said Chiles.

WASHINGTON, DC - The U.S. Agency for International Development announced today the swearing in of Thomas H. Staal as its new Mission Director for Ethiopia. Counselor to the Agency Lisa Chiles presided at the event and administered the oath to Staal.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) announced that Tijara, its private-sector development program in Iraq, has helped provide more than 132,000 micro-loans worth a combined value of $300 million since the start of U.S. government microfinance assistance to Iraq in 2004.

WASHINGTON - The guilty verdicts handed down today by a Sudanese court represent a critical step in bringing justice for John Granville and Abdelrahman Abbas Rahama, USAID employees killed in Sudan on January 1, 2008. Granville and Rahama represent the best of our Agency- service to others and a compassion for those in need. They were working to bring peace and stability to Sudan. On behalf of their colleagues and friends at USAID, we mourn their loss but will continue to honor their memory and dedication.